Who Knows Their Power Tools
 

I'm looking to buy some Ryobi cordless power tools, but seem to be getting harder to find. Noticed a new design at a UK site. Does this mean they're making room for them in the US?

I bought an 18.0 V Ryobi cordless drill set at Home Depot (Canada)... wouldn't be suprised if the US market was similar.

Yeah, i see the Home Depot site still carries some, but the selection is definitely shrinking, and the local Depot isn't restocking. Hmm... did you see the 18v with the new smaller battery? i can't find info anywhere on how "new" it is or if it's coming stateside.

http://www.randrtools.co.uk/CBD-1802U.htm

I also picked up the Ryobi 18v kit at Home Depot about a week or two ago. It's not the one you have linked and I did not see anything like that in the tool dept. They had a lot in stock there so maybe your local store is behind on shipments.

Not that there's anything wrong with Ryobi-they're just towards the lower end of the durability food chain. If you're a household weekend warrior, they are probably adequate, but wouldn't be up to the daily use my Bosch, Makita, Porter-Cable and Milwaukee tools see.

I agree, avoid Ryobi. Go with Craftsman, if anything ever happens to it, they will replace it, no questoins asked.

The other companies above are also excellent, but are just a little harder to get fixed or replaced

Not 100% sure of this but I thought Craftsman stopped the lifetime warranty on everything except hand (non-power) tools. Heck-I wanted a replacement plastic tool case for a ratchet set when the latch broke off and they refused to give it to me.

Ha! Craftsman tools are not worth the price. I worked for Sears for 3 years in H.S. Trust me on this one. Quality wise their about the same as Black & Decker. Their lifetime warrenty does not cover anything except hand tools. Don't buy Sears ppp (product protection plan) it's just not economical. On this note, the Craftsman Professional drills are actually quite nice, but still not worth the price.

Stay away from DeWalt, too. Their overpriced (allthough semi decent).

Ryobi used to be a good brand, but not any more. They actually make allot of the craftsman drills now.

Good brands are Milwakee, Makita, and Bosch (yeah, I can't spell.)

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That being said, are you sure you need cordless tools? How often are you really going to be out of reach of electricty?

I know you said you wanted cordless tool, but I'd like to suggest corded tools. They'll preform much better, last longer, and be easier on your pocket book.

If you simply must have a cordless drill, look up http://harborfreight.com. I got a cordless 18v drill from them for $15. Their low quality, but they get the job done. I'd reccomend going there for a cordless and thake the money you saved and put it into a solid corded makita drill that will last forever. More then likely, this route will be much less then a decent quality cordless drill.

Ok, first, a lot of brands are being phased out of Home Depots because the Rigid brand is made specifically for Home Depot. Kind of pointless to stock loads of your competition.

Regarding Craftsman power tools: I'm not a fan. Their drills (and probably the rest of the power tools) come with a one year free replacement/repair guarantee.

What exactly will be the use of your tools?

Many of the craftsman tools are rebranded. The LaserTrak 7 1/2 inch circ saw was made by GMC (Australia/pacrim distribution). I'm happy ewough with it, though.

Bought a drillsaw combo from Craftsman two years agao and gave them light use. the batteries are about played out now.

Harbor fright tools: Okay for light use and short term.

Black and decker: I have the 1/4 square finish sander. the dust bag isn't worth a darn, but connected to a vacuum, it's a nice sander. I like the jigsaw. Both are nice tools.

DeWalt's recip saw is nice. I like mine. As long as I get heavy duty blades (the white ones? some other company makes them) and keep away from the dewalt blades all is well.


For the next battery tools, I'll be looking at 19.2 or 24 v.

I am looking at that craftsman 10" contractors table saw and at the Delta compound miter saw (dual laser, can't remember the modele number).

Thanx for the info. Cables just annoy the crap out of me. Dewalt is too expensive for what I'll be doing. Don't want the tools to cost more than the projects. I don't think I'll need more than 18v.

Kind of a side note, Im looking into buying a new cordless drill
should I go with 14.4 or 18 volt - Home depo has a nice
package with 14.4 drill, stud sensor, and a 14.4volt flashlight ALL black and decker

Im not a contractor or anything, im actually a Dewalt fan, my Dewalt cordless still works- but with a cordless id be more likely to get things done ;)

tool manufacturers
 

Also remember that there are a few manufacturers making the many brands available....all craftsman stuff is made by Black and Decker etc....Black and Decker is really Dewalt...who knows who else is making what and what is the label on it....

The black & decker firestorm series is essentially dewalt with a different shaped battery to keep the dewalt guys from being able to buy the cheaper B&D batteries. I've had mine for something like 6 years now (back when the batteries were the same across the 2 brands) and have abused it pretty badly, but it just won't die. Still runs perfectly.

I have a 14.4 volt Dewalt power drill that's about 5 years old and going strong.

Other than that, I don't have any cordless tools, figuring that beyond a drill, I'll be able to plug in.

But dang, I like taking the drill wherever and drilling :D

I've got a 14.4V Drill, a 8in Circular Saw, a 9V power screwdriver, and a sander all by DeWalt. I beat the living hell out of them and they won't die. They may be a bit pricey, but thier good tools, and i'm crazy about good tools. worth the investment, IMHO

As a rule, spend more on the tools that you will be using the most. Drills, circular saw, sander, and maybe jig saw. Anything other than those staples, your money ahead to buy lower end. A good Milwaukee brand drill should last the average home user a lifetime, with proper care. It really all depends on what you are going to be doing.

Go with the 14.4. The only benefit to have an 18volt drill is if you are driving something large (like lag screws) or drill large holes constantly.

Yep. You're sbsolutely right. Making large holes, or many holes, always go with a corded drill. Battery drills are good for the occasional driller. I use mine to fasten jboxes and put in drywall anchors. Pretty light duty stuff.

There's a world of difference between boring a 7/8's hole through a couple joists using a battery drill and using a corded drill. A nice corded drill will go through those joists like butter, even with a big spade bit. Same thing with boring a hole for a doorknob.

I've owned the B&D Cordless Multitool, model # MT1203B for two years this December. It's a drill/driver combo, jigsaw and sander, using the 12V battery. Never had a problem with it, except for the battery running low when I forgot to charge it (d'oh!).
Drills through just about anything (used mine for installing car audio systems), and uses the "Mouse" sanding system.
[/shameless product plug]

ryobi is cheap looks good but sucks they dont hold up .... i use power tools evrey day lots of battery stuff and ryobi just dosnt make the cut. i highly recomend dewalt for cordless i really like hitachi and ridgid both for cords....if you still want the ryobi brand you can find it in tool mags like grizzley or american tool things of that nature.. and of cousre ebay.

For the average DIY person, Ryobi is fine. I don't think it would be my first choice, though, for cabinet making or furniture, but for hanging a door or general use around the house use, it's fine. Another brand to consider is GMC.

GMC Tools are marketed by a company in Australia and are now available in Lowes. I regularly visit some .AU woodworking forums. GMC had some rough times for a bit, but in the last year the quiality has turned around and they're getting a good reception. Besides, the price is excellent.

Home Depot has the lock on Ryobi's storefront sales. Rigid is also exclusive to Home Depot. GMC as far as I have seen is only sold at Lowes (including the website).

I've had good luck with the 18Volt Ryobi, so much so I just bought a second set for the barn. Home Depot had a great set fro $169 which included drill, 5 1/4" circular saw, light, vac. and a reciprocating saw all in a carrying case.
I've not had good luck with the Black and Decker or the Craftsman tools. Craftsman stuff continues to slide in both quality and guarantee.
Go witht the 18 Volt.
Incidentally Consumer reports rated the Ryobi cordless drill a best buy in May of this year.

Cordless drills: Power for less Here is a bit from the web site:


"High-voltage power at a low-voltage price is the biggest news at your local cordless-drill aisle. You'll also find faster-charging batteries, stud finders, and other features as marketers refine America's best-selling power tool.

While many 18-volt drills still cost $200 or more, a few CR Best Buys from Ryobi and Skil cost less than some 12-volt models, once the top-selling category. And even the priciest 18-volt drills cost and weigh less than 24-volt models that have recently come and gone, yet offer similar performance.

Better batteries explain some of those gains. While most cordless drills still use nickel-cadmium batteries, a few, including Panasonic, now use nickel-metal-hydride cells, which delivered longer run time in our tests. Less environmental risk is another benefit over nicads, which contain toxic cadmium and must be discarded at designated collection centers.

Other drill brands are stretching conventional battery power in other ways. Some are also adding features that deliver fewer benefits than they imply. Here are the details:

Quick charging at a cost. The Home Depot is marketing a new line of Ridgid drills that offer charging in as little as 20 minutes, rather than the usual 60 minutes or more. One Ridgid model, the 14.4-volt R83015, offers dual-battery charging, letting you run the drill using both batteries back to back, recharge both cells at the same time, then quickly get back to work.

Both new 14.4-volt Ridgid drills we tested lived up to their quick-charge promise. They also had the power of 18-volt drills (we'll judge 18-volt Ridgids in a future report). But the price for that speed and power is relatively little run time per charge, which means you'll have to stop work more often to charge the batteries."

I am a big fan of corded tools... Cordless ones never quite get the job done and I just end uf going back to the corded ones. Harbor Freight is a great place to shop, but you need to go to their store and check out what you are buying... they do sell a lot of bad stuff... so go to one of their stores if you can to check out what you are buying.

there is only one power tool i care about, and it doesn't use batteries

Believe me I was drooling over the dewalt cordless combo kit. If it was in my budget to get the dewalt tools I would in a heartbeat. However as things stand I cannot afford them so I settled on the Ryobi. Yeah, they may not be the best but I really only need it for weekend type stuff around the house. Once I'm a bit more established with the house I 'll look into some nice tools so I can build my mini ramp. :)

I'm a heavy duty tool user; I beat the living crap out of my tools. I have a 12V drilland when I am ready to get another one, most likely it will be an 18 or better still 24v. If I am doing serious work, of any extended duration I use corded tools, but suspect that a good 24 volt with quick chargers and two or three batteries would be able to keep up with me.On the corded drills I have burned out like three or four with the stuff I have had to do, like complely finishing my basement, and other projects on that scale.

wow 3 or 4 drills on 1 basement each... whamo.. i hope they wernt any good.... cause dam i build sevral houses a month and have only gone tru 3 in 4 years.. the 24 volt is sure nice but.. it weighs 4000 pounds.. if you are carrying any kind of other tools all the time you dont need the extra weight the 18 is nice also but still heavy.. personally i love the 14.4 have 4 of them and they really hold i highly recomend the xrp as its all mealt inside is nealry non destructable.. for insaynce the milwakee 18 volr fel just 13 feet and the whole battery contact broke off.. the mikatas just dont have the force needed to drive a 3 inch screw thru a door jam.. and then the ryobi well i have actully seen them in use but if your not verry carefull with the first batery charge they wont ever work right.. be sure to do the whiole 12 hr charge.. id say they are an ok buy for the money...... :thumbsup:

I was at a local Home Depot for its grand opening. The salesperson was pitching the 18v Ryobi kit to people but also informed them that the kit will be on sale by Christmas for approximately $99. You never know, it might be true. Just FYI.

I've got a pair of Makitas. The older ones with the 9.6 volt stick batteries. One is variable speed, and the other is two speed. I upgraded the VS one with a 1/2" capacity keyless chuck, and put the 3/8" keyless chuck on the two-speed unit. Other than some NiMh batteries bought on eBay last year, those two drills are still serving me well, and I went into business over 10 years ago.

If I needed to replace them, I'd buy Bosch, but not because the Makitas haven't given me great value.

I've been reframing. A basement all week...including tripleing all the Joists... (gotta build to newer codes) and have been using a DeWalt 14.4 XRP for everything. It's been dropped several times...with no ill effects. It's got plenty of power to do anything I need.

Someone mentioned a few posts ago that B&D Firestorm and DeWalt are the same...for the most part that's true. But it's like buying an Toyota vs Lexus. They are made by the same company but they are not the same. B&W is fine for random stuff around the house, but DeWalt is much better for heavy duty stuff.

-Will

Everything I have is Makita and so far I haven't had to replace one battery or tool. I built a house last year (I'm in between contractor & do-it-yourselfer), had it framed & took it from there. I have their 18V cordless drill for probably four years or so & still works perfect. I also have their orbital sander, belt sander, jigsaw, and recip saw (all corded) and they have all been beaten to death but still work perfectly. The only non-Makita I own is a 12" slide miter that DeWalt makes...been impressed with that as well. The 18V Dewalt tools do leave a little to be desired if you ask me. Our shop went through two in three years, now on Makita stuff. Spend the money on a cordless drill, get the best one you can buy. You'll use that one tool more than just about anything besides a hammer.

I use a cordless drill daily for several hours. Over the years, only one has taken the use. I use an 18v DeWalt cordless working as a locksmith and alarm installer. I toasted several Makitas in just a few years. The DeWalt has been going strong for 5. I can easily run a 2 1/8" holesaw in a metal door when I can't get my corded Milwaukee Holeshooter plugged in.

Regards

No we won't. You have to buy the replacement agreement (which you should anyhow, you pay like 6 bucks for 2 years. Guess how much a battery costs? 60 dollars. Guess how long battery life is? 2-5 years.).

Hand tools have the garaunteed lifetime warranty, you can bring those back any time you want and you'll get a new one.

You can buy an 18 volt cordless drill for 40 bucks at Sears right now.

After going through others Milwaukee is my hands down favorite. I paid $320 for the 4-piece 18V kit. Driver, circular, recip, light, two batteries, carry bag. They usually offer it with a promo free battery or radio or .... You can find lower count kits but the driver is the most expensive. Consider ebay for items you won't use.

If the drill is your main thing try chucking a garbage bit or rod between competing drills to see which wins. It usually isn't tough to get salespeople interested in this test.

B&D, Ryobi, and several Craftman models come off the same assembly lines. Shop on price & extras because durability will be roughly the same. They all use nylon drive components. I believe DeWalt still uses nylon in their drivers as well, which was the death of my last commercial unit.

I'll have to go with Milwaukee too. We use nothing but Milwaukee drills and saws in our tool crib at work. The knuckleheads in the maintenance shop use them like they belong to brother-in-law and they hold up well.

ur title got my attention...

and i couldn't resist this answer...

Clavus knows his power tools!!!

(sorry to thread jack) :D

While I only have experience with hitachi nail guns, I have been eying their 18v cordless combo kit. It looks pretty damn nice to me, it also comes with a cord attachment that lets you run off of a cord that comes from the charger if you run your batteries out. I thought that was a pretty sweet feature, and am hoping that santa brings me a set this year :D

My recommendation is to splurge, as someone else mentioned, on the tools you will be using most (i.e. drill). I bought some quality tools for car stereo build and installation, and now when I have projects to do around the house, I can just pull those out and get it done. It has been helpful to have good tools for a variety of projects.

I would get a DeWalt 14.4V. Strong enough for the occasional heavy drill but light enough to use around the house/garage.